A dress with a FULL SKIRT that makes you look like you are floating when you walk into a room. I bought this one in a stretchy fabric from Zara for under $100 —  a price that was less than my meal at a very hip restaurant in Greenwich Village where I got three compliments on my inexpensive, but very chic dress.

Moderately priced at $350, J. Crew’s  beige, pleated wool shift not only moves beautifully, but transitions easily from day to night. Wear it with a belt, cardigan, and pumps for work. Lose the belt and put on a pair of sling backs and some gold bracelets for dinner out.

If you want to splurge, go for this Alexander McQueen lace knit jacquard wool and silk print that will come right out of your suitcase ready to put on. The black and ivory color combination makes this piece timeless, so really the $2080 price is a bargain, right?

Fall has not arrived until you pick up something with SEQUINS. It doesn’t matter if wear them on tennis shoes for day or on a dress for cocktails.

Sparkle with lots of sequins — this dress from Vince at Neiman Marcus.                                                          

Or, just on your feet — Christian Louboutin’s leopard print sequin pumps.

Take a break from lady-like or just give it an edge with LEATHER. Theory has a great shell and updates a plain wool car coat with leather sleeves. Or, if you can afford them and pull it off, there are some cool leather jeans (that stretch!) out there. I have no idea how they process the leather to make it feel like it has Lycra in it but I tried them on and they are unbelievably comfortable. I loved  the L’agence lambskin pair.

Neiman Marcus says the color for fall is BORDEAUX–I say go GRAY. This neutral was everywhere and it looks great with CAMEL — clean and classic.

Favorite collections: CHOLE is divine! Stella has a feminine groove happening with color-blocking and transparent cutouts that give you all the right curves. TORY BURCH is channeling Chanel and she’s doing it very well with her tweed jackets and skirts. BANANA REPUBLIC’s Mad Men collection — chic and affordable — makes you want to have a martini.

To accessorize these feminine looks you’ll need a clutch for night and a proper HANDBAG (the strap goes over your arm, not your shoulder) for daytime. Bold, gold jewelry is big this season — I love it paired with pearls. There are GLOVES galore being shown and PUMPS, with or without sequins, are perfect to complete the look. If you are feeling particularly glamorous FUR is a great accent for this season — on cuffs, hems, or a fur scarf.

For the GUYS: If you want to update your look put on a VEST .  You can pull one of your three-piece suits out of your cedar closet or just pickup a sweater vest to wear with a sport coat and jeans. If you need a new suit the hottest jackets have a third flap pocket — called a change pocket or a ticket pocket — above the right hip pocket, and are close-fitting.

SPRING 2012 — The spring lines were showing at Lincoln Center when I was in New York. I chatted-up several models at the Starbucks on 60th one morning and the word is SEQUINS will still be around in the spring, TRANSPARENT fabrics are everywhere from blouses to the bottom two thirds of skirts, and robin’s egg blue, sea-foam green, and yellow will be the big colors.

Happy Shopping!

For the guys: Pocket squares!  There are lots of ways to wear them — with a suit and a coordinating tie (but not match-y, match-y); or with no tie you can really go crazy with your color and pattern.  For a hipper downtown look wear your pocket square with a dress shirt (open collar and un-tucked), sport coat, jeans (make them dark) and cowboy boots. Or, for an even more casual look — pair your sport coat and a loosely tucked-in square with jeans, t-shirt (nice, no logos!), and driving mocs.